La Danza
by December Chocolat
Summary: He had made the mistake of making his wife a Kuchiki; he would not make the same mistake with his wife's sister.
1. Chapter 1

Hello~it's December Chocolat, with my very first ByakuyaxRukia piece.

I know there are many stories like this one, but this is just my take. I've made many changes; for example, Renji, Izuru and Momo are older than Rukia.

Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

Chapter 1: Discovery

He lost his wife just as the first spring blossoms were blooming in the fifth year of their marriage.

It had been the shortest five years of his life. For much of the marriage his wife Hisana had either been bedridden with her terminal illness or wandering aimlessly around the first and second districts of Rukongai. He hadn't understood why Hisana had persisted on leaving the safety of their home to spend much of her days in such poverty-stricken places in her frail condition, until she confessed to him a secret that altered his perception of a wife whom he had mistakenly thought he had known so well.

"I had a younger sister," Hisana had said, her indigo eyes glimmering with unshed tears. "I had a sister that I abandoned in Inuzuri when she was only a newborn baby."

After uttering these words, her frail frame had hunched over as she released a shuddering sob. He had held her hand as she cried herself to exhaustion, catching a glimpse of the guilt that had slowly been poisoning her for all these years.

His wife continued to search every day, and at the end of every unfruitful day he would await her return with a cup of tea and a handkerchief for her to wipe her tears with. Neither of them had the heart to say that the child hadn't survived. Inuzuri was among the worst of the Rukongai districts, known for the rampant criminal activity. Hisana's sister had been guaranteed death the moment Hisana had abandoned her in that alley.

"She is alive." Hisana had said with conviction. "She never cried, not even when I dropped her."

"Infants are no match for adults." He had reminded her gently.

Hisana had blanched.

"She had reiatsu, like Byakuya-sama." She had whispered. "She had so much reiatsu that it made me feel faint."

Children did not radiate telltale signs of reiatsu until they were several decades old, old enough to be enrolled in Shinoreijutsuin. Also, Hisana had no reiatsu at all and therefore it was highly unlikely that her sister had any.

Winter, Hisana's most dreaded season, arrived. His wife was confined to their home while he was kept busy at work as the newly appointed captain of the sixth division. She suffered from relentless scolding from Kuchiki elders who criticized her inability to bear a child, blaming her barrenness on her poor background.

"How could I be blessed with a child," She had murmured through her tears, "if I've abandoned the first one I had?"

Hisana succumbed to her illness just as spring arrived and the bitter cold subsided. He had held her hand as she pleaded with him in her final moments to find her sister. Like the fool he was, he had promised and her guilt had been passed onto him. Hisana died with apologies and regrets on her lips. She died without managing to find her sister, a girl whose name she did not even know yet loved more than anything in the world, including him.

"She was such a pretty baby," Hisana had murmured on her deathbed, days before her death. "She had the strangest eyes. Violet, like amethyst. But she never smiled. She was as serious as Byakuya-sama."

As soon as Hisana had passed away he sent his men to Rukongai with orders to search for a girl with violet eyes whom he assumed would, at the very least, somewhat resemble his wife.

The search wore on for days, then weeks, then months. With each negative report, he became more certain that the newborn had not survived to childhood. He hadn't had expectations from the beginning, but the promise he had made to Hisana weighed heavily on his shoulders and prevented him from withdrawing the search.

A lonely and bitterly cold winter passed, the first winter he had spent alone in five years. When the first blossoms bloomed on the trees, he knew that it had been a year since Hisana passed away. A year of searches that had yielded no results. His men, although they daren't say it aloud, were running out of places to scour.

One evening, a Kuchiki elder had requested to speak to him in his study, most likely to bring up the subject of his remarriage. Proposals from noble families had been trickling in slowly, a few months after his wife's death in order not to seem tactless but disgusted him all the same.

"If it is about the issue of the next Kuchiki heir then I will hear about it at next week's meeting." He said flatly. "If you'll excuse me."

He turned around to lock himself in his study.

"Byakuya-sama, it would honor me if you would listen to my words." The elder said before he could slide the doors shut. "I have news that I believe you would like to hear, and it has nothing to do with the subject of your re-marriage."

He stopped in his tracks, his back to the elder. "Then say it now."

"Oh, but it is not news that is fit to say outside." The elder said, a smile evident in his voice. "As you may know, Byakuya-sama, there are many ears in this household."

"Then enter."

The elder made sure that the shoji doors were shut before kneeling across the table from Byakuya, who was shuffling aimlessly through papers.

"I believe I have found the girl you have been looking for." The elder said, his voice low. "Lady Hisana's younger sister."

Byakuya's fingers stilled. The papers in his hand seemed of little importance as he set them down and stared at the Kuchiki elder.

"I am certain, my lord." The Kuchiki elder nodded with conviction. "The girl is a replica of Lady Hisana in appearance."

"Where have you found the child?" Byakuya asked, blood pounding in his ears. A girl whom he believed had died at infancy was alive. His sister-in-law, his last connection to his deceased wife was alive.

The elder hesitated and clasped his weathered hands together.

"Shinoreijutsuin."

….

The girl's name, he discovered, was Hanata Rukia. She was a fourth-year student at the academy and the youngest member of the advanced placement class. According to the proud Headmaster, she was widely considered a prodigy.

"You aren't the first captain to ask about her, Kuchiki-taichou." The Headmaster said as he handed him Hanata Rukia's files. "We've had many Gotei 13 members visit the school in hopes of recruiting her. She'll be graduating with the sixth-year students this year."

He masked his presence and observed his sister-in-law in school. With one glimpse the girl managed to open a flood of emotions he hadn't known he had been capable of feeling: liberating relief, painful grief, brief jealousy and startling fascination. The girl radiated so much life that he felt foolish for assuming that she was dead.

Rukia did indeed resemble Hisana. They shared the same dark, inky hair with the trademark strands between the eyes, although Hisana's was longer. Their features were similar, although Rukia's were much sharper and angular, a trait of all Inuzuri children. However, the longer he watched Hanata Rukia, the more differences he saw. Hisana had been taller, with a willowy stature that made her seem as if she could fall over from a gust of wind. Rukia was smaller, a foot shorter than her classmates, but her feet were firmly rooted to the ground and did not move unless she wanted to. Hisana's eyes had been a warm, dreamy indigo that were always so far away that he often wondered whether she was truly looking at him. Rukia's eyes were violet, just as Hisana had claimed, and could harden with determination, flash with anger or light up in happiness.

He watched Hanata Rukia during her classes. She sat in the middle, twirling a pencil in her hand and chin resting on the palm of her hand. She watched her in the hallways, bowing to teachers and kicking upperclassmen. Her blatant disrespect and violence appalled and fascinated him at the same time.

A red-haired boy twice her size was often by her side, as was a lanky blond and a brunette with pigtails. He was relieved to see that the girl, despite her disagreeable nature, had friends.

He studied the documents the Headmaster had given him. Hanata Rukia had taken the entrance exam four years ago. Her examiner had noted that she displayed unrivaled reiatsu but had concerns about her malnourished condition and young age. She was from the outskirts of Inuzuri, raised by someone who claimed to be her grandfather. She had been forced to join the academy by a Gotei 13 member who had submitted a report claiming that Hanata Rukia's uncontrolled reiatsu had been affecting the weather in the village she lived in, decreasing crop yields because of the cold temperatures.

He perused her performance reports. Rukia scored the highest of all students in kido. Her hakuda and shunpo scores were above average as well, but her zanjutsu score was low. He watched as she sparred with the red-haired boy and could see why. Her inferior size and narrow build were not made to wield a sword as long as she. But what she lacked in size, she compensated with brutal force and unorthodox methods. He watched, mildly impressed, as she clashed bokkens with her opponent and launched a swift uppercut at the boy's jaw before he had the chance to overpower her.

He watched this energetic girl live her life, unaware that for years she had been searched for and had been the cause of her sister's waterfall of tears. Yet he could not bring himself to hate Hanata Rukia, not when she smiled at her pig-tailed companion's animated storytelling, not when she crammed for a test with her blond friend, not when she pointed the tip of her bokken triumphantly at her red-haired friend, not when she lived life in such blissful ignorance that it would be hateful of him to reveal that she had been the indirect cause of his wife's death.

Hisana had wanted him to adopt the girl as his own sister. He couldn't bring himself to do so. The Kuchiki family would suffocate this free-spirited girl and would waste her potential. He had made a mistake of making Hisana a Kuchiki; he would not make the same mistake with Rukia.

He would protect Hanata Rukia his way.

...

A penny for your thoughts?


	2. Chapter 2

Hello, it's December Chocolat~with a new chapter.

Surprised by the quick update? Yeah, so am I.

This chapter focuses on Rukia's relationships with Renji, Momo and Izuru. Izuru may seem OOC, but please keep in mind that he was a very bright and rather cheerful person during his academy days. Not as gloomy as he is now :)

Byakuya and Rukia will meet soon, I promise! Please bear with me.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

CHAPTER 2:

"I can't wait until graduation."

Rukia looked up from her papers and smiled wryly at the brunette sitting across the table from her, whose cheek rested upon her palm as she stared out the window in a daydream, most likely one about the fifth division's captain, Aizen. Rukia hadn't been present to witness Aizen saving her friends during a practice mission in the Human World; she had been trapped in detention, sullenly erasing chalkboards as punishment for falling sleep in class ten consecutive times. In her opinion, it hadn't been her fault; with the private training and extra night classes, she hardly had enough time to sleep.

"I hope I can pass the squad 5 entrance exams," Momo continued, twirling the pencil in her hand absent-mindedly.

"They aren't hard," Kira Izuru, the lanky blond sitting next to Momo, said reassuringly. "The written portion is a little tricky, but the practical exam is the easiest of all the divisions."

"What about you, Abarai-kun?" Momo turned to face the red-haired boy from across the table. "You're still planning to try out for the fifth division with us, right?"

Abarai Renji scratched his neck awkwardly. "I guess."

"Why, is there another squad you've been considering?" Momo leaned forwards, her eyes wide in alarm.

"Didn't you mention something about trying out for the 11th division?" Izuru said with an easy smile.

The tips of Renji's ears burned red. "Shut up, Kira."

"What about you, Rukia?" Momo looked at the dark-haired girl with a curious gaze.

Rukia, who had been scrawling last-minute notes, glanced up from her papers. With her trademark half-smile, she shrugged before returning her focus onto the history textbook in front of her. The four friends had gathered at the library once again to cram for the history exam next class, and Rukia was hell-bent on earning a perfect score. She couldn't lose to Izuru, not again.

"Come to think of it, you've never told us which squad you plan on joining." Izuru commented.

The three friends paused their conversation to stare at Rukia, who paid them no attention and continued to pore over her books. They had always found it odd that while everyone else was abuzz with excitement at the prospect of graduating and joining the elite Gotei 13, Rukia had always been uncharacteristically silent.

"I bet she'll try out for the 1st division." Renji snickered, leaning back in his chair. He stretched his back to uncoil his muscles, which had tightened from sitting too long.

"Wow, the 1st division." Momo said warmly, her eyes alight with admiration. "I've never heard of anyone taking the 1st division entrance exam."

"That's because no one passes it," Renji snorted. "Most of the 1st division members are squad transfers. No one passes the entrance exam on the first try."

"You really are something, Rukia-san." Izuru shook his head. "Even I'm not that ambitious."

"I think you'll make it." Momo said confidently. "You're the prodigy of our generation, after all."

Rukia reached over to take a look at Izuru's notes while pointing out to Renji that he was studying the wrong material; their next class was human history, not kido incantation. Renji swore loudly while Momo and Izuru fell over laughing. It was a welcome distraction, and Rukia breathed a sigh of relief. Conversations about the Gotei 13 always made her uneasy and irritated. More and more shinigami were visiting the academy these days, and she had to endure hours of pretending to listen to someone boast about how great their division was. The recruitment brochures she received were promptly given to her classmates or recycled.

In order to graduate from the academy, all senior students were required to take the entrance exam of the division(s) of their choice. Truth be told, Rukia had never given the Gotei 13 much thought. She had only enrolled in the academy because 1.) Renji was there and 2.) the bloody shinigami she had the misfortune to run into in Inuzuri hadn't given her much of a choice. Not that she regretted the past four years spent at the school; she had been the recipient of a cost-free education, which she would always be grateful for. The academy had taught her how to control her reiatsu and how to fight, two skills that she would always remember.

While becoming a member of the esteemed Gotei 13 was an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Rukia would have to decline. She and Renji had an elderly grandfather back in their hometown of Inuzuri, an aging fellow who was running an orphanage by himself. One of them had to return to Inuzuri to take care of their grandfather and the orphanage, and it would definitely not be Renji. He was hell-bent on becoming a shinigami and serving under the command of absolute nutcases (she would know; she had met several of them when they came to the academy to recruit her). So, in effect, Renji had been the one to make her decision for her. After graduation, she would return to Inuzuri and find a job to sustain herself, her grandfather and the children at the orphanage. It was highly unlikely that she would find such a well-paying job in Inuzuri, one of the worst districts of Rukongai, but she could hope. For now, her studies were her top priority to ensure that she would graduate at the top of the class.

"We'd better leave." Izuru sighed, gathering a stack of books, thick enough to rival Rukia's pile, in his arms. "Class begins in ten minutes."

"This had better be the last written exam." Renji growled as they left the quiet confines of the library into the crowded hallways.

"We still have the final exam next month." Momo reminded him sadly. "I heard that there are questions on the test that aren't in our books. I wonder how the teachers expect us to pass."

"If you do some extraneous reading outside of class I'm sure you'll do fine." Izuru replied.

"Extraneous reading, my ass." Renji muttered. "Haven't you two read all the books in the library now?"

"That's why we should pay a visit to the one in Seireitei." Izuru said with a smile.

"Restricted to Gotei 13 members only." Rukia reminded him, resting her sharp chin on the stack of books in her arms to prevent the pile from toppling over.

"Don't worry," Izuru said cheerfully. "I've got a plan."

The blond walked ahead of them into the classroom with a smile brightening his features.

"What's up with that guy?" Renji scowled as he dumped his books onto the first empty desk he saw. Momo took the seat beside him. Rukia stuck her tongue out at Renji before skipping down the stairs to join Izuru at the very front.

"Do you want to share my textbook, Abarai-kun?" Momo pushed her book to him.

"Nah, it's fine." Renji flashed Momo a confident grin. "I studied chapter fourteen last week."

Momo blinked at him before giggling. "Our test is on chapter fifteen, Abarai-kun."

"WHAT?"

…

"Man, I failed that test." Renji said as he slurped his noodles, so it sounded more like, "Mm, I-asdfnajnkjandskfj."

"I'm surprised that you still have an appetite." Rukia remarked dryly as she transferred the beef from her ramen onto Renji's bowl. She didn't have much of an appetite; the test had been absolutely brutal, especially the last few questions on the Ashikaga Shogunate. Rukia had never seen a live human and couldn't care less about their history. Momo had suggested that they eat dinner at the local ramen restaurant in the first district of Rukongai, which they sullenly complied.

"It's okay, Abarai-kun!" Momo said cheerfully, the only optimist in their group of sulking students. "We'll study hard for our final exam."

"Speaking about the final exam," Rukia's eyes narrowed as she glanced at Izuru. "What is the plan you were talking about earlier?"

Izuru set his chopsticks down. "Oh, that. I know that there will be questions about the Gotei 13 captains and lieutenants on the final exam, but I can't find any of the Gotei 13 records in our library. According to the librarians, they're kept in the central library, but that's privy to Gotei 13 members only."

"What do you suggest we do?" Momo tilted her head curiously, setting down her utensils as well.

"This is where we need your help, Rukia-san." Izuru turned to face the dark-haired sitting across from him. "You're the best at hakuda, right?"

"She is not!" Renji fumed. "That midget can't even reach high enough to land a punch."

Before Rukia could overturn the table and begin a fight in the restaurant that would ban all of them for life, Izuru said, "Your fighting style isn't needed for this plan, Abarai-kun."

"What do you mean?" Renji scoffed, his eyebrows narrowing.

"There are always two guards at the entrance to the library at all times." Izuru lowered his voice, leaning closer. "I was thinking that Hinamori-kun could distract the guards while Rukia knocked them out. Then we could break into the library, take a look at the records and leave."

All three of them stared at Izuru, anger momentarily forgotten. Izuru, the law-abiding noble. Izuru, the academy's golden boy, had just revealed a scheme that even Renji, the infamous rule-breaker, was stunned by. Izuru himself seemed shocked that he had revealed his plan and waited anxiously for his friends' reactions.

To everyone's surprise, it was Rukia who finally broke the tense silence. The girl doubled over and collapsed against the wall, her thin shoulders shaking like a leaf in late autumn. Renji let out a string of expletives before snatching Momo by the cuff of her uniform. He stood up so abruptly that he knocked his chair over.

"Abarai-kun, what are you-" Momo shrieked, her feet barely brushing the floor in his grasp.

Rukia was always angry at Renji, but he had never seen her shoulders shake nor had he ever sensed her reiatsu fluctuate in such an uncontrolled manner. The girl was _pissed_, and he needed to grab Hinamori and run for his life far, far away. Izuru would have to suffer Rukia's wrath, the poor bloke, but his outrageous ass-of-a-plan was bound to land him in trouble anyway.

"Never mind," Izuru confessed hastily, backtracking in terror at Rukia's reaction. "We don't have to do it. I'm sorry, I don't know what I was thinking."

Renji was about to turn and sprint when he caught a glimpse of Rukia's face. Her pale cheeks were flushed pink and her eyes were watery as she slapped the wall repeatedly, letting out peals of high-pitched laughter. Renji, Momo and Izuru's jaws dropped and all three of them stared at Rukia, who was in full-blown hysterics.

Rukia _never _laughed. Not even when Renji blew himself up using kido. Not even when Momo wet the bed in their dormitory and she had to wear Izuru's underwear while Rukia and Renji changed the sheets. Rukia was always the one who stood in stony, unimpressed silence while others shrieked with laughter.

Rukia wiped the corners of her eyes and let out an airy exhale. "I didn't know that you were such a riot, Kira-kun."

"You thought he was _joking_?" Momo and Renji exclaimed in unison.

"What are you two doing, standing up?" Rukia raised an eyebrow. Renji immediately dropped Momo, picked up his chair and sat down while muttering, "nothing."

"I wasn't joking," Izuru said as he sighed, leaning back in his chair. "But I guess it's too risky of a plan. I'm sorry I brought it up. I'll ask the librarians if there are any other ways we could access the Gotei 13 records."

"Breaking and entering," Momo shook her head in disapproval. "I can't believe you came up with such an idea, Kira-kun."

"I don't disapprove," Renji said with a grin.

"Abarai-kun!"

"Sorry, sorry. I take it back."

"We should finish and hurry back." Izuru lifted his bowl of ramen to his lips. "I have to visit the library before it closes."

"Last one to finish their ramen has to pay!"

…..

"Byakuya-sama, would you care for some tea?"

He nodded his thanks as Eiji, the oldest Kuchiki elder, handed him a cup of steaming herbal tea.

"Have you been to the academy?" Eiji said in an easy, conversational matter, as if he were inquiring about the weather.

Byakuya's eyes narrowed. "Have you mentioned your findings to anyone other than myself?"

"Of course not." Eiji shook his head. "I have disclosed the information to you alone, Byakuya-sama."

"Good. The rest of the family does not need to know."

"Ah, but they do." Eiji lifted his eyes to meet Byakuya's calm stare. "If you plan to take further action, that is."

He saw the imperceptible downturn of Byakuya's lips. He was treading on thin ice now, and he decided not to probe any further, even though his curiosity lingered.

"I do not." Byakuya said, after a prolonged silence.

"You do not?" Eiji repeated, stunned. He had been preparing arguments and digging through the Kuchiki archives for the past week, trying to find information with no avail about noble family adoptions because he had been absolutely sure that the head of the family would adopt the child he had seen briefly at Shinoreijutsuin. "But Byakuya-sama, I am absolutely sure that the child is—"

"Hisana's sister, yes." Byakuya said, the words tasting bitter in his mouth.

"She is a Kuchiki, but you will not claim her?" Eiji's eyes were wide in disbelief.

"She is not a Kuchiki." Byakuya's voice was hard, putting a halt to all of Eiji's indignant arguments.

After enduring a silence thick with tension and unspoken accusations, Eiji stiffly bowed and slowly rose to his feet.

"Please excuse me, Byakuya-sama." He said, curbing the curtness in his tone. "I ask for your permission to retire."

"Leave." was the young head's offhanded reply.

Eiji slid open the door. Before sliding it closed, he glanced over his shoulder.

"Please remember, Byakuya-sama." He murmured in a quiet voice. "Your very own sister-in-law is an orphan."

With those daunting words Eiji slid the door shut behind him.

Byakuya's terse form relaxed as all of his energy was drained from him. He looked out into his gardens, a sanctuary his wife had so loved.

"I would like my sister to play here one day." Hisana had once said as they sat on the grass one evening, her dove-like hands sweeping across the lush green grass.

_Hisana, I'm sorry._

_..._

_A penny for your thoughts? _


End file.
